


Four Times (And the Lucky One)

by Jarl_Deathwolf



Series: The Lucky One [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste Knows, Adrien Agreste's patience is tested, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Fluff without Plot, Happy Ending, Movie Night, Partial Identity Reveal, Romantic Fluff, slight crack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-06
Updated: 2019-10-04
Packaged: 2020-10-11 09:03:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,522
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20543576
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jarl_Deathwolf/pseuds/Jarl_Deathwolf
Summary: For the past few months, Chat Noir has been visiting Marinette Dupain-Cheng. These evenings gave him a sense of easy companionship and comfort, until he slowly began to realize that maybe - just maybe - Marinette might be more than just a friend to him. Just as it seemed that trouble brewing on his horizon, he made a chance discovery that the two women he loved were one and the same.But now comes the greatest challenge of Adrien's young life - asking Marinette Dupain-Cheng on a date.





	1. Understandable

**Author's Note:**

> Hello and welcome to this short story about Adrien, where the universe tries its best to test the extent of his patience. I'll be updating this story once a week, so sit back and enjoy this little adventure.

Adrien’s heart pounded in his chest as he vaulted over buildings in his haste to check on Marinette. Normally, he’d just accept that the Ladybug cure would have fixed anything that was wrong, but these last few months of frequent visits to her balcony as Chat Noir…

...Well, they’d helped him see her in a different light. A light where he got worried about her safety even when there was no logical reason to be besides her home being kind of close to an akuma battle. He was conflicted over it since his feelings for Ladybug certainly hadn’t gone away in the meantime, leaving him torn between two amazing women. 

But that was a problem for later. For now, he just wanted to make sure that Marinette was alright. 

He landed on a building across the street from Marinette’s home and took a moment to catch his breath in the shade of a rooftop umbrella. He snuck glances through her bedroom windows, trying to see if she was there. The akuma battle had been a tough one, and had even required that he recharge in the middle of the fight. Come to think of it, while he hadn’t used his cataclysm towards the end, Ladybug had definitely used her lucky charm. She should be transforming back any minute now. Hopefully she was alright.

A shadow passed over his hiding spot. As if summoned by his concern, Ladybug herself landed on Marinette’s balcony. Adrien frowned - were Ladybug and Marinette friends? Did Ladybug think Marinette was in danger? As he watched, there was a brief flash of red and Marinette was pacing her room, followed by a floating red and black creature.

His eyes flew open and he let out an involuntary ‘eep!’ before making a beeline for his home. All his energy was focused solely on getting him there. It was only once he rolled into his room through his window that he allowed himself to begin to process what he had just seen. Almost immediately, he became a panicked wreck. So much so, that it took him a few minutes to even realize that he’d been pacing his room as Chat Noir ever since he got back.

“Claws in.”

Plagg yawned and stretched before plastering a wicked grin on his face. “Well, well, well. Looks like loverboy has finally figured out who his dear sweet love is.” He watched Adrien pace before adding, “Sit down, kid! You’re going to drive me crazy.”

Adrien did as he was told and absently fidgeted with his ring. “This isn’t good, Plagg…”

“What?” The kwami scoffed. “I thought you’d be thrilled about this! You finally know who ladybug is - it’s like a dream come true for you!”

“She’ll be so mad when she finds out!”

“Oh like Ladybug hasn’t been mad at Chat Noir before.”

“Marinette doesn’t get mad at Adrien though!”

“...I guess?”

“Besides,” he said with growing dread. “I had a chance with Ladybug, you know? I figured maybe I could get her to fall for me eventually. We spend a lot of time together, we have great chemistry, we’re both heroes…”

“Yes,” Plagg drawled, “I am aware of this.”

“But Marinette…” Adrien stared off into the distance, ignoring Plagg. “I barely had a chance with Ladybug. But Marinette is totally out of my league.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me-”

“Plagg. Ladybug is one thing, but brave, selfless, kind, beautiful, student council president, helps everyone she meets, Ladybug-without-the-spots MARINETTE? How can I hope to be cool enough for her?” Adrien leaned back in his chair and whined, “_Chat Noir_ isn’t cool enough for her!” 

His eyes widened and he sprung out of his chair. "Wait... oh no, Plagg! Ladybug said she likes another boy, remember? What am I gonna do?!”

There was a long silence and eventually Adrien risked looking over at Plagg, who was staring at him in stunned disbelief.

"It's you.” 

Adrien frowned. “No, she’s made it clear she doesn’t have feelings for Chat Noir-”

Plagg waved a paw irritably. “No, no. _You_. Adrien Agreste. She is _crushing on you_. Big time, kiddo.”

“No,” he said, crossing his arms, “She made it very clear that she isn’t. She’s even said as much.”

"Kid, she has photos of your face taped to her WALLS.” 

"She likes my father’s label!"

"And I can’t believe you bought that the first time, let alone all the other times!" Plagg rolled his eyes. “Listen - trust me on this, pigtails has a big ol’ crush on you and the only one who doesn’t know it is _you_.”

Adrien was about to protest, but everything began to click into place. The stuttering that had gotten better during their friendship. The photos of him scattered throughout her room. The time she confessed that she loved him when she thought he was a statue. He’d brushed it all aside because she always assured him that she didn’t have feelings for him, but if he disregarded that… the evidence was clear. 

Stunned, he collapsed into his desk chair, slack jawed. “She… loves me.” He lurched to a sitting up position. “I need to tell her that I’m Chat Noir.”

“I mean, yeah, probably.”

“But I can’t just _tell_ her.” 

Plagg gave a tired sigh. “Why not, kid?”

“Because she might get mad at me for finding out, but she can’t be mad if she finds out on her own too!”

“That… doesn’t make sense.”

“It makes plenty of sense! I just need to get her alone so only _she_ gets the hints. I can’t give Alya clues too.”

“What about taking her on a date?” Plagg suggested half-heartedly. “Plenty of time alone there.”

“That’s perfect! This will be easier than I thought.”

“Maybe.”

“What do you mean ‘maybe’?”

“Well… you _have_ been awfully insistent that you two are just friends. It might be tough to get her to think otherwise now.”

Adrien ran a hand through his hair and bit down on the rising panic. He could do this. He was Chat Noir, superhero and famous romantic. How hard could asking out one girl be? 

\------------------------

The next day, Adrien waited outside the school for Marinette. He wanted to be sure there were as few eavesdroppers around as possible. While there was the matter of secrecy, it was more the romance of it that Adrien was after. If he allowed himself to hope, then this first date would be the start of a long and loving relationship. It had to be absolutely perfect and that meant getting the perfect opportunity to ask her out. Even if he had practical matters to worry about when they were actually on that date, like delicately and subtly destroying their secret identities. 

While he was lost in his thoughts, he very nearly missed Marinette leaving the school. Nino and Alya had already left together, which meant that Adrien had a golden moment where neither of their friends would be hovering over them. He could speak from his heart without being afraid of looking foolish.

“Hey, Marinette!” He called out to her as he rushed over to her. “I need to ask you-”

She turned around and his tongue stopped functioning. He became lost in her piercing blue eyes and he belatedly wondered how he had ever managed to talk to her before. Was she always this pretty? Had he just been too blinded by Ladybug to notice? Either way, his train of thought crashed and burned.

Her eyes became concerned. “H-hey, Adrien! Cool meeting you here.” She winced. “Not that I, uh, didn’t expect to see you here. At school, I mean. It’s just, uh, you- you usually leave. Pretty quick. Once school is done. So… y-yeah. Wh-what did you want?”

How could one person be so endearingly precious?

“I, uh… um, that is, you-” 

Her face became clouded with concern “...Are you okay, Adrien?”

“Y-yes.” He took a deep breath. “I just wanted to ask-”

A roar interrupted him and he scanned the horizon. Screams were heard soon after and he narrowed his eyes. No doubt there was an akuma out there, but he had something important to do first. He turned back towards Marinette…

...Or, more appropriately, where Marinette had just been. No doubt, his dutiful lady was already on her way to the akuma. Better not keep her waiting. He ducked behind a bush. As his transformation washed over him, he kicked himself. It was so close, too! 

Hopefully next time would be easier.

\---------------

There was something definitely wrong with her kitty. 

The fight was taking longer than it should, mostly because Chat Noir seemed distracted. That wasn’t anything too noteworthy. They were human beings, after all, with civilian lives and all that came with it. Sometimes they would have an off day, and that was nothing to get too worked up about. Both of them had plenty of those kinds of days

But the sudden lack of flirting from her partner? That was worrying. Even in life-or-death situations Chat Noir took the time to lay it on thick as he tried to woo her. There had been a few compliments from him, so she knew he hadn’t been replaced in some weird akuma scheme, but something definitely felt off-kilter. 

The weirdest thing of all was the shyness, though. It wasn’t much - just a little tremor in his words, the way a blush would creep out from under his mask if their eyes made contact in the heat of the fight. It wasn’t something she was used to from her bold kitty. He was almost acting like she did out of the mask. 

When the fight ended and the Ladybug cure had been released, she eschewed the usual fist bump in favor of pressing her hand to his forehead. He jumped at the unexpected contact.

“M-my lady?”

“No fever,” she mumbled. “So you probably aren’t sick.” She put her hands on her hips and watched him carefully, noticing the way his fingers twitched at his side and he could only steal glances at her. “What’s up, kitty? You usually aren’t this… skittish.”

He gave his most charming smile and she could see the nervousness dropping away from him like a cloak. “Sorry. I guess I’ve just had… things on my mind. _Civilian_ things. You don’t need to worry about me, m’lady.” 

The way he put emphasis on civilian made her curious, but she knew she couldn’t prod any further. If he wanted to talk about it, maybe she’d find out when he visited Marinette soon. For one reason or another, he was more open about his feelings then - at least, the feelings that weren’t his affection for Ladybug, which he always wore on his sleeve. 

“If you’re sure…” She offered her fist, which he gladly bumped. “I’ll see you later, chaton. Take care of yourself.” Her yoyo flew out and soon she was flying above the city once again. She risked a glance behind her, expecting to see Chat Noir’s back as he made his way home, or wherever it was that he went. 

To her surprise, he stood in the same spot and watched her leave.

\-------------------------

Adrien landed in his room and called off his transformation.

“Well. That could’ve gone better,” Plagg commented drily.

“I’ll say. But I’m not worried. It just means I’ll have to try again - and next time, it _will_ work.”

“Planning on being less of a stuttering mess next time around?”

Adrien shot Plagg a dirty look, but instead of being chastised the kwami simply cackled. “Yes, I will be. It’s just… been a lot to take in. I’ll be better next time. You can count on it.”

“What makes you think it will work any better?”

“I’ll have it planned out! With how my schedule is, I won’t have another opportunity for a while, so that means I have plenty of time to figure out my next move and set up the ideal scene. There’s no way anything can get in the way this time!” 

While Adrien struck a pose and stared off into the horizon, full of hope and energy, Plagg rolled his eyes behind him. That boy’s romantic notions were gonna bite him in the butt really quickly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic was inspired by this: https://thewritewolf.tumblr.com/post/187479063070/sweetsweetsweetie-nothing-like-ripping-apart
> 
> The scene will be making an appearance, but as you can see... I kinda went crazy on the topic and it expanded wildly out of my control. XD
> 
> Enjoy!


	2. Unfortunate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Attempt number two! Will Adrien be able to overcome Nathalie, car horns, and principle visits in his pursuit of LOVE?

There was a gentle knock on the skylight. Marinette set her pencil down and craned her neck to catch a glimpse of who might be out there. Not that she really needed to - there was only one nocturnal visitor that she got on her balcony.

His bright smile and vibrant green eyes set against the darkness were the first things she saw when she opened the skylight. She was sure he could easily open it from his end if he really wanted to, but she appreciated that he would never let himself in without being invited first. Even if she had never turned him away yet. 

Even though sometimes she felt she should, cut this off before it turns into something more. After all, this wasn’t how it was supposed to go. Chat Noir was her partner and she valued that friendship greatly. And although she wouldn’t admit it to anyone outside the comfort of her own mind, Marinette could feel herself starting to fall for the cat. 

It was made all the more confusing when her feelings for Adrien were brought into the mix. Another friendship that she valued, another friendship she feared ruining. At this point, she had all but accepted that they were just good friends and he wouldn’t be seeing her as anything else any time soon.

But then she’d see how Chat Noir would look at her when she thought she couldn’t see him… and she wondered if maybe it wouldn’t be all that bad to take a chance.

Or at least it would, if Chat Noir hadn’t suddenly started showing up less and less. And those few times he _did_ show up, those loving glances were far less well hidden. These mixed signals could really confuse a girl. She needed to clear things up - find out what was happening on his end. But she had to be sneaky about it. He could clam up if she was too direct. 

“Hey, Marinette, I was in the neighborhood and-”

“Why have you not been visiting as much?” Marinette winced internally as her own mouth betrayed her. Just as expected, Chat’s pupils narrowed into pinpricks from panic and he froze halfway through entering the room.

“Well- er…” He rubbed the back of his neck and laughed nervously. “...You noticed that?”

“So it’s intentional then.” She carefully guarded her expression, trying to keep the disappointment from her face. 

Chat Noir sighed. “I’m sorry, Marinette. I’ve just realized it is…” His eyes became unfocused for a minute as he looked off into the distance,” ...Too dangerous! For me to, you know, visit as much as I used to. I didn’t want to worry you, so I didn’t bring it up, but…” He frowned. “Don’t worry - I can still visit sometimes!”

He wasn’t avoiding her! A weight lifted from her heart and she breathed a sigh of relief. 

“Thanks for being concerned about me, Chat. I appreciate it.” She smiled and got a brief moment of satisfaction when she saw a slight blush peek out from under his mask. “I’ve got snacks and I’m ready to take a break from homework. Want to watch a movie?”

The moment she mentioned snacks, he began grinning. “I’d love nothing more.”

\------------------

It had been two weeks since Adrien’s last attempt, all of which he spent as a tight ball of nerves. Once again, he was waiting for Marinette just outside the school. But while everyone else had long since left, Marinette had yet to leave the building. The last he saw her, she was heading towards the principal’s office. It was a surprise to him - she had been very punctual all day, so there shouldn’t have been any reason for such a trip. 

He kicked at a few loose stones as he sat on the front steps of the school. While he was willing to wait as long as he needed to, he knew that his time was limited. Sooner or later he wouldn’t have much choice in the matter. Knowing Nathalie, it was bound to be _sooner_ rather than _later_. His flimsy excuse wouldn’t buy him a lot of time, but hopefully it would be enough.

“You never struck me as someone who worries about danger, kid.”

“Huh?” Adrien looked down at his bag and saw glowing green eyes peering back at him.

“Remember last night? When you were talking to Marinette?”

“Oh, right. Well… while I do care for her safety, I know that I’m too stealthy at night for those trips to really hurt her at all. Someone would have to be watching her balcony like a hawk to see me sneak in.”

“Lying to your girlfriend already.” Plagg snickered. “So why are you _really_ not visiting as much as you used to? And don’t tell me its because you don’t want to - I see how much you sigh and groan and stare longingly out the window at night.”

“If you’re going to make fun of me, then I won’t tell you.” Adrien crossed his arms.

“Kid, if you think there is anything that will stop me making fun of you, then clearly we don’t understand each other.” He took a bite of cheese. “So you better spill.”

“Fine, fine. Basically, it's because I want to reduce the temptation.”

“Temptation to do _what_?”

“Reveal myself pre-maturely. Drop too many hints. Most of all, be my own wingman - I think that would just be cheating, you know? This is something I need to do as Adrien if it's going to work.”

“Of course it is,” Plagg grumbled. “Can’t just rip off the bandage, no… You gotta take your sweet time with it. Really maximize our pain and suffering.”

Before he could chastise him for being dramatic, he heard the doors to the school open. Turning around, he saw Marinette step outside the building. He rose to meet her halfway. 

Unfortunately, she seemed to have other things on her mind since she ran right into him. Thankfully, he caught her by clamping his hands on her shoulders and steadied himself before they could go tumbling. In the middle of mumbling apologies, she looked up into his face and her eyes went wide with surprise.

“A-adrien?! What are you doing here? I thought you had-” She snapped her mouth shut before cautiously continuing, “Well, I thought you were busy today.”

“I was waiting for you. There is something I needed to ask you.” He let her shoulders go and put his hands on the strap of his bag. “What were you doing, anyway? I saw you go into the principal’s office and...” He trailed off with a frown. 

“Oh! It’s actually super awesome!” Her awkwardness vanished as she began to gush about her project. “Since I’m class president, I wanted to see if I could use that position to help do something good. So I’ve been talking with the school to see if we could do this charity auction and-”

Adrien smiled as he listened to her talk, which was an absolute treat. It wasn’t often that he got to hear her speak normally around him as Adrien, and he loved to listen to her, especially when she felt passionate about what she was talking about. Of _course_ she would be doing something so noble and selfless. Of _course_ she would be using every gram of power she had to help people. How could he have not realized that Ladybug and Marinette were the same person? She had such a big, caring heart and he was so lucky that-

His phone rang, cutting her off and dredging him out of his reverie. He shot her an apologetic look as he pulled out his phone.

“Hello?”

“Adrien, you are _late_ and I really don't appreciate you wasting time like this.” Nathalie got right into it, her voice terse and strained. “The Gorilla should be there any moment now and I do not want you to squander even a second more than you already have. Do I make myself clear?”

“Y-yes, Nathalie.” Behind him, he heard a familiar car horn. A noise that chased him in his nightmares. 

“Good.” She hung up, too annoyed for further pleasantries.

“I… have to go,” Adrien said sadly and began running down the stairs.

“Wait!” She called out to him and he paused to turn around. “What did you want to ask me?”

“I-” A car horn cut him off and he slumped. “Don’t worry about it. It can wait.” He gave her a strained smile before heading towards the car.

“O-okay… Bye good! I mean, goodbye!”

Adrien tossed his bag into the back in annoyance and sighed loudly when he sat down. Another perfectly good attempt - ruined.

\-----------------

Adrien dragged himself into his bedroom and closed the door behind him. It had been a long and grueling day, but the most frustrating part of it had been getting so close and failing at the last minute. But he knew that asking her out with a car horn honking in the background wouldn’t have been nearly romantic enough. Not to mention how much trouble he’d get in just for “wasting time” - as if there was any better use of his time than the pursuit of love. Plagg floated out of his backpack the moment he set it down. 

“Well, well, kid. Another failure. Wouldn’t it be great if you could settle this right now? Just pop over to her place and drop your transformation like a normal person?”

“Plagg! What happened today was…” He made a face as if he had bitten into a lemon, “...unfortunate, but two attempts aren’t failures. I’m willing to do this for as long as it takes.”

“Kid. Now you’re just being stubborn. This isn’t worth the frustration.”

“_She_ is worth it.” Adrien shoved a wedge of cheese into Plagg’s mouth when he opened it again, no doubt to argue some more. “I’m doing this _my_ way. It’s taking... longer than I had hoped, but I’m still determined to do this. She deserves to know, and this is the best way to do it.”

“Whatever you say, Adrien,” Plagg grumbled from around the wedge of camembert in his mouth.


	3. Setback

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Attempt #3 - Is a torn sweater and a classic dinner/movies Adrien's key to success?

Adrien sat at his desk, resting his head on his arms as he waited for class to begin. The chill of winter had set in and he was almost grateful for it since that meant that his face was pressed up against the warm softness of his sweater. It was becoming thin in places from how much he had been wearing and washing it lately. He could sympathise - with all these late fall photoshoots and various other activities his father had crammed into his schedule, he was feeling pretty threadbare too. 

Marinette passed by and he flashed her a warm smile as she made her way to her seat. She even paused in her conversation with Alya to tell him good morning. Taking her spot behind him, she continued talking. Since he had nothing else to occupy him, Adrien listened in while his eyes fluttered shut.

“Hey girl, isn't that charity thing you're in charge of coming up in a few weeks?"

"Yeah…” Marinette tapped at her desk. “I've got a lot of ideas but I need to start making a concrete plan so that I can submit a request for school funds. I'm going to come in early tomorrow morning to scope out the place and really start making decisions."

“Oh wow, you’ll probably be here before anyone else then, won’t you?”

Adrien’s eyes flew open. Despite the exhaustion he felt in his bones, that sounded a lot like an opportunity. Definitely one that he couldn’t pass up.

Marinette groaned. “Don’t remind me. Just _thinking_ about waking up that early is making me feel tired.”

Their conversation was cut short when class started, but the gears were already turning in his head. This plan was destined for success!

\---------------

Shambling through the deserted halls of the school, Marinette made her way towards her classroom. There was still plenty of time before she actually needed to be there, and she had nowhere better to be. Sure, she could technically go back home and slip into bed, but that would only buy her what? Twenty minutes? As strong willed a fully-awake Marinette COULD be, years of abused alarm clocks and delayed mornings reminded her that she'd end up being late today too. So to class it was.

Her plans were to get as comfortable as possible and fall asleep at her desk. Alya would definitely wake her up before class started. What she didn’t account for, however, was the classroom not being empty. Which might not have been that bad, if it weren’t for the fact that it was _Adrien Agreste_ standing in the middle of the room looking pensively at a sweater sitting on a table.

A sweater which he must have just been wearing since the only thing covering his chest was a sleeveless undershirt. Marinette entered the room hesitantly.

“G-good morning, Adrien!” Nailed it. “What’s, um, what’s the matter?” Not perfect, but she’d take it.

“Oh!” He looked over at her and smiled, making her heart do a backflip. “Hello, Marinette. I’m just trying to figure out how what I’m going to do with my sweater.” He turned back to the piece of clothing in question and held it up. His hand poked through a large rip in the side. “The seam ripped and now I’m stuck here in the cold without it.”

“I could fix it for you!” She winced at how excited she sounded. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to mind. “Since, I, um, since I have a sewing kit on me most of the time.”

“Really? That’s great!” His eyes sparkled with joy and he offered the ruined sweater to her. “Would you please?”

“Of course! Just give me a few minutes…” She pulled out her miniature sewing kit and sat down at her desk to work. Adrien took Alya’s spot and watched her work. 

“So what brings you in so early?”

In her surprise, she almost missed a stitch. “Oh, um, you remember that thing I was telling you just under a month ago?”

“Three weeks ago, actually.” She glanced over to him to see his chin resting on his hand. “That is, if you’re talking about the charity auction.”

“Y-yeah, that. So, ah, I needed to do some scouting for locations and talk to some teachers. Before I make any committees or anything.”

His eyebrows flew up. “Committees? This sounds a lot bigger than I thought it was.”

“Kinda? I, um, I tend to go… a little overboard. Sometimes. You know?”

“I get what you mean,” he smiled. “I can be a little… much sometimes too.”

She didn’t know what to say to that, but he seemed perfectly happy with companionable silence. After a few minutes of swift stitches, she’d fixed the sweater. She passed it back to him and smiled at how his face lit up. She watched him slip it over his head and giggled when his mop of perfectly styled hair popped out. 

“Thanks, Marinette. You really helped me out here. Why don’t you let me make it up to you?” 

“Oh no, you don’t have to-”

"I'm free this evening - for once - and I was wondering if you'd like to go out?"

For a moment, her soul left her body and she froze up. This couldn’t be happening. Adrien Agreste did _not_ just ask her out. Then her mind processed what he’d said and she relaxed a little. He didn’t say on a date, he just said to hang out. Like friends.

"Oh! How about dinner and a movie?"

"That sounds great!" 

She saw their friends through the glass. They’d gotten here a little early too, but not by much. People were going to start funneling into the school any minute now.

"Awesome! There's Alya and Nino, I'll go tell them!" 

Clearly, he wanted to hang out with all his friends, right? They rarely all got to hang out together - surely he was itching for an opportunity to spend an evening having fun. He probably meant that he would pay for her fare when they go out as her reward for fixing his sweater. Yeah. That made sense.

"Yeah, and-wait. Marinette!"

Marinette was so happy that she’d get to spend time with Adrien, so focused on telling Alya and Nino the good news, that she didn’t even notice Adrien groan and bury his face in his hands as she left the room. 

\------------------

Adrien was on the verge of having a good time, which was to say he was having a very frustrating time. 

He had spent the entire night like that - always so close to what he wanted while being so far away. At dinner, Marinette sat next to him, took a bite off his plate (at his insistence) to try what he had ordered. At the movies, he shared popcorn with the love of his life, saw her face illuminated by the light of the big screen. And yet it was NOT a date and she was painfully unaware of how adorable she was being. Like how her nose crinkled when he made a pun. Or how she gets excited over the good food. All the while Alya and Nino were practically all over each other, being exactly what he wanted to be with Marinette. He felt like his head was going to explode.

It was both a blessing and a curse when they stopped at Marinette’s house and Adrien stepped out to hold the door open for her. When he slid back into the car, he was surprised to see both Alya and Nino staring at him. 

“Is… something wrong?” Adrien asked, looking cautiously between them. He was having trouble reading their expressions.

“So, are you going to tell us what tonight was all about, sunshine?” Alya watched him carefully and crossed her arms in front of her.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Today was… a fun hangout. Between friends.” As much as the words tasted like ashes in his mouth, that was exactly what the day had been. 

“Dude…” Nino tugged on his hat and shook his head. “We’re not _blind_. There was some kinda something going on in the background. Marinette might have been too caught up in-” He was cut off by a glare from Alya. “Um, things… but we totally noticed. You looked supes frustrated most of the night. When you weren’t making goo goo eyes at M, at least.”

No. No way was he going to have this conversation. The first person to find out his feelings for Marinette was going to be _Marinette_. Not his prying, if well-meaning friends. 

“Sorry, bro. I can’t say anything.” He put a hand on Nino and Alya’s shoulders. “But trust me, guys. WHEN something happens between me and Marinette, you’ll be the first to know.”

Alya’s eyes lit up and she leaned forward to interrogate him further, but Nino pulled her back. 

“Sorry, babe. This is your stop. You’ll have to terrify my bro later.”

She glanced rapidly between Nino, Adrien, and the Gorilla, made a face as if she'd sucked on a lemon and sternly pointed at Adrien.

“You better treat her right, centerfold.”

Nino and Adrien rode in silence for a few minutes, Nino only breaking the quiet when they arrived at his home. 

Hovering at the car door, he poked his head in and said, “I’m happy for you, bro. You’ll be good for each other, I can already tell.” He grinned and held out his fist. “Good luck, dude.”

Adrien returned his smile and bumped his fist against Nino’s. “Thanks, dude.”

\-------------------

Back at home, Adrien collapsed onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling. He wanted to bang his head against his desk in frustration. He had been so close!

Although today hadn’t gone as planned, it hadn’t been a bad time. If he had ever been uncertain about dating her before, he wasn’t now. Not when he saw first hand how amazing a date with her could be. No one could deny that he was getting closer to his goal, either. Maybe actual double dates wouldn’t be too far removed from his future after all? Then they could look back at this and laugh… 

Plagg snickered. “I guess the casual approach didn’t work out too well for you, kid.”

“It worked alright,” Adrien said with a frown. “It could’ve worked better, though. My problem was that the date idea was too much like a normal hang out. I need to have a more concrete date in mind when I ask next. Something so romantic that she can’t possibly mistake it for just hanging out.”

“You know what would be even more effective? If you just-hey!” Plagg was cut off when a flying pillow slammed into him. Even from beneath the plush layers of fluff, Adrien could hear Plagg loudly cackling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's attempt was a recreation of this post:
> 
> https://thewritewolf.tumblr.com/post/187479063070/sweetsweetsweetie-nothing-like-ripping-apart
> 
> Which was also the scene that inspired this entire story.


	4. Cursed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's almost time for the charity event and the whole school is in a tizzy trying to get everything set up in time! Will Adrien be able to set up romance in such a hectic space?

Something quickly became very clear to Adrien - it was one thing to be flying over Paris under his own power. It was quite another to be latched onto another person that was carrying him at great heights and at a breakneck pace. As his arms clung tighter to Ladybug, he consoled himself that at least it was someone that he trusted with his life. 

Despite the urgency, every point of contact between the two of them burned like fire and he knew that his face was clearly showing just how flustered he was. Without his mask to hide behind and knowing just how amazing she was out of hers, he was finding it very difficult to keep any kind of composure around her. 

“H-here,” Ladybug said as she set him down on a rooftop. “We’re far enough away now th-that you should be safe, A-adrien.”

_Be smooth be smooth be smooth._

“Getting me out of there thanks! You!” Adrien wanted to slap himself. All that time training in front of a mirror with her picture on it! Coaching himself to not screw up! And he squanders it immediately. Although, in his defense, he didn’t practice being _Adrien_ with _Ladybug_. The one scenario he didn’t think to plan for.

She blinks then giggles and smiles. “You’re cute.” Her pupils shrink and she gets a blush to match his own. “I- I should get- akuma? You know.”

“Y-yeah. Akuma. Can’t uh… can’t let it keep… going.”

“Right. Great. So… bye?” She waves awkwardly, backing away. She stumbles over a lawn chair and turns it into a masterful roll. The reminder of her clumsiness almost washes away his anxiety. Almost.

When he knows she has left eye sight and earshot, he groans loudly into his hands. A cackle emerges from his bag. 

\----------------------

An alarm clock blared and Adrien shut it off irritatedly. The last few nights had been haunted by that encounter with Ladybug outside his mask - thinking of every stutter, every awkward moment. But remembering her blush, and how reverently she had told him that he was cute. A compliment that even now made his heart flutter.

He was in deep now. 

Between Marinette being busy with organizing and his own hectic life, there hadn’t been an opportunity to talk with her alone in two whole weeks. Even a passing glance at his own schedule had only served to dampen his spirits. Today was clear - an event so rare the universe had decided to respond by making the next month and a half booked solid. But today was also when all her plans would start reaching fruition and she would be setting up for the silent auction.

While the circumstances weren’t… ideal, he’d have to try to ask her out today. There wouldn’t be any better chances for a long time. And he wasn’t sure how much longer he could do this. None of that mattered though - today was the day! He could feel it! Nathalie wouldn’t interrupt him this time. There wouldn’t be an akuma attack at just the wrong time. He’d be clear with his intentions. The sun shone brighter, the birds were singing sweetly - how could love possibly not prevail today?

The trip to school was uneventful, but that just made the buzzing activity there all the more jarring. As he went through his classes, his faint hope that he would be able to get just a moment of her time before the big event died out. Too many people were constantly walking up to her, asking her questions, getting her advice on things. It was amazing to see her so in her element - she had truly blossomed into the leader he knew she could be. It was both inspiring and deeply frustrating that she was so busy - it meant that despite being so close, she was so far from him. 

Classes were out and Adrien had nowhere else to be today than right beside her. He followed the general flow of his classmates into the gymnasium area where the auction would be held. Everything quickly descended into an ordered chaos that Marinette was overseeing with cool confidence. Taking a deep breath, he waited for a lull in activity and approached her as she was consulting her clipboard.

"Hey, uh, Marinette?" He rubbed the back of his neck, his nerves frayed. 

"Hm?” She blinked up at him and gave him a distracted smile. “Oh, hi Adrien.” She quickly leafed through her papers again. “Let's see, Rose handled the flyer hanging..."

"So listen, I was wondering if I could take-"

"Take this box of supplies to Nathaniel?” She motioned to the box next to her. “Adrien that's really helpful, thank you! Just don't strain yourself-” The soft voice she had been using to speak with him turned sharp. “Chloe, I don't know what you're doing over there but you can go find somewhere else to be unhelpful!"

While she stomped off to nip that problem in the bud, Adrien sighed and hefted the box with ease. With all his superheroics, he was a lot stronger than he looked. He was more concerned about the missed opportunity, but… he would stay here all night if he needed to. 

It took him a little while to find Nathaniel and when he did he was glad that the artist was shy. Besides a quick ‘thank you’, they didn’t waste any time with pleasantries and Adrien could return to his quest. 

More minutes wasted hanging by the sidelines, waiting for a thinning of the crowd. When the time came, he rushed forward.

“Marinette! I wanted to ask you about lunch.” He said it all in a rush, sacrificing specifics to just get it off his chest.

“Huh? Oh! Sure, sure.” His heart soared. She finally understood! “Here is everyone’s orders and here is the money we’ve collected. There is a place right down the street. Thank you so much!”

An envelope bulging with money and a form covered in dozens of different signatures was pressed into his hands.

“But I-”

Then she was off again to supervise another critical part of the set up. With a long suffering sigh, Adrien broke into a dash as he headed towards the restaurant. It took over half an hour to get everything ordered - more than enough time for him to pop over to the Dupain-Cheng bakery and buy an order of desserts for everyone with his own money. He’d seen how hard everyone was working and felt bad that he was mostly just there for Marinette. 

It was nice chatting with his future in-laws while they were packing the baked goods for him. There was a warmth there that he was unused to receiving from the adults in his life.

By the time he had the box in hand, he returned to the restaurant and picked up everyone’s lunches. It was a struggle, but he managed it all by himself and returned the triumphant hero. 

He had expected to have an opportunity during the food break, but half of the people there didn’t fully stop to eat and Marinette was among them. With a sandwich in hand, she bravely carried on flitting about the various trouble areas in a way that would have normally been impressive but which was causing him no end of frustration now.

In fact, frustrating would be the word he would use to describe how the whole attempt went, assuming he would be talking to anyone about this (he would not). It was the same story for the rest of the night - try to approach her, get sent on an errand, finish it, return to her, repeat. Eventually he realized that he would just have to wait until they were done and catch her before she headed home. At least then she wouldn’t have something to have him do and he could get more than a few words out.

Which is why Adrien was now standing outside the school, waiting at the front door as his classmates slowly passed by. Some would wave at him. A few would thank him for his help, Others would smile. But it wasn’t until Alya and Nino stepped through did anyone try to talk to him.

“Hey, centerfold.” Alya raised an eyebrow at him. “Why’re you lurking out here?”

“Well, I couldn’t talk to Marinette all night so I was hoping…” He trailed off as he looked past them, hoping to catch a glimpse of her. His two friends exchanged a concerned look.

Nino pulled on his hat. “Dude? Marinette left like an hour ago.”

Adrien’s heart fell. “What?”

“Sorry, blondie.” Alya rubbed his arm comfortingly. “She had to help clean up at the bakery. Knowing she had to leave early was part of the reason she was working so hard.”

“Oh…” Adrien sagged. “I guess I’ll call for the Gorilla then…”

Nino pulled Adrien into a half-hug. “We’ll stick around while you wait for your ride, my dude.”

“Thanks, bro.” He managed a weak smile before typing out a text.

\-------------------

When he got home, Adrien collapsed onto his bed. He wanted to feel glad that he at least helped Marinette out today, but all he could feel was sad. It would be a long time before he’d get another shot.

Not even Plagg could find a way to laugh at his misfortune this time around. The kwami simply curled up on Adrien’s head as they both drifted off to sleep.


	5. The Lucky One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fifth attempt... and the luckiest yet.

It took a lot to drag himself out of bed. These last few days had been an absolute slough to get through and not just because of his overbearing workload. Which was unsurprising since early December was always the busiest time of the year for him. The simple fact that he wouldn’t be able to try again with Marinette for _six more weeks_ weighed more heavily on him than the photoshoots, the fencing practices, the Chinese lessons, and all his schoolwork. But he had to persevere, if only so he could reach that point again.

While he was eating breakfast alone in the dining room, Nathalie entered with her tablet in hand. She walked over to him without her eyes ever leaving the screen until she was standing right next to him, at which point she looked down at him impassively.

“Your photoshoot for the afternoon has been cancelled.” She held up a hand to forestall his question. “In addition, Monsieur D’Argencourt has reported that he is ill and will be cancelling classes for at least the next few days.” 

He waited patiently for her to say what would be replacing these activities, but instead of explaining further she began to walk back out of the room.

“Wait!” Nathalie turned back around. “Does that mean… I have the day off?”

There was a pause. “Yes. Will that be a problem? If so I can-”

“No! No, that’s… that’s fine. I’m sure I can find something to do on my own. Thank you.”

Nathalie raised an eyebrow but nodded and left.

During his trip to school, the faint embers of hope were slowly being stoked as he scrolled through his social media. He didn’t want to get too optimistic, though - he still needed to get Marinette alone and that had proven his downfall time and time again. 

Something caught his eye as he was scrolling. There was an outdoor movie event at the park tonight. He felt confident that she liked movies - she’d mentioned it as Ladybug once or twice, he was sure. If he threw in a dinner, then that would be romantic enough, right? It wasn’t far off from his last semi-successful attempt, but he had to try.

The car came to a stop and Adrien absentmindedly got out. He was here early enough that Nino wasn’t waiting for him - in fact, not many people seemed to be around. For a moment he considered waiting outside for Marinette, but quickly decided that he’d rather sit down in the classroom. In the meantime, he could figure out a plan for talking to Marinette without anyone else around. He stepped into the classroom.

There she was. At her desk. Semi-tired, working on some assignment at the last minute. In shock and disbelief he looked around the room. 

Empty.

Completely, blessedly empty.

Except for the two of them.

Not wanting to scare her, he made sure that his footfalls were audible as he stepped towards his desk to set down his bag before crouching down next to her. Despite all his preparations, she was so out of it, and so focused on what she was doing that she was still startled when he spoke.

“Hello, Marinette.” He spoke with the sweetest, most pleasant voice he could manage. The effect was immediate - a faint blush dusted her cheeks, and made her freckles stand out all the more. How could one person be so adorable?

“Oh! H-hey, Adrien. What’s up? How are you?” 

Without anything else to hide behind, she was feeling nervous again. Even he tell sense that as she only barely stopped herself from babbling. 

“Pretty good. That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about.” He rested his chin on the arm he had set down on her desk, forcing him to look up to meet her eyes.

“R-really? What do you, um, what did you want to t-talk about?” Her hands were in her lap and despite how she tried to hide it, he could see how they were clenched and shaking. 

“I was just-” He coughed, finding his tongue to have dried. “My schedule was suddenly clear for today. And I guess- Well, I was wondering if you wanted to go out to dinner and movies with me...?”

He saw her freeze for a long moment before melting again. “Oh, that sounds cool! I’ll ask Alya and Nino-”

"No, Mari.” He rolled forward on his knees, rising enough that he was eye level with her as he softly grabbed her shoulders. “Just you and me. I want to go on a date. With you, if that's okay. You're really special to me and... just please? This is very literally my fifth attempt. You're a wonderful-Mari?" She went boneless under his hands and he just barely caught her before she went tumbling. “Marinette, are you okay?!”

“Y-yeah. Just… just peachy.” She straightens herself out, but still has a dazed look on her face. A deep blush spread across her entire face and started to touch her neck. “So you… want to go out… on a date… with me…?”

There was no hesitation as Adrien nodded. His stomach fluttered, but he forced himself to be as confident as possible. The hard part, he assumed, was over. “Absolutely. If you’ll have me, of course.” Some uncertainty intruded into his mind. “I mean, you can say no if you want-”

“NO!” 

Adrien reeled and made to remove his hands. “I… I see.”

Before he could move them more than a few centimeters, Marinette had quickly placed her hands over his, keeping them in place. Words fired out of her mouth as rapid speeds. “Wait, no, sorry, that came out wrong. I meant, there is no way I’d say no. I’ve just been waiting on this for a while now and I never thought- I always thought _I’d_ have to be the one to make the first move. I’m just so surprised that you asked and please please please don’t be sad I didn’t mean it, I want to go out with you, honestly.”

Adrien took a moment to look to the side and process what she had said.

“So…” he said tentatively, “Is that a… yes?”

She threw her arms around his neck. “_Yes_.”

After a moment’s hesitation, he slipped his arms around her waist and returned the hug. 

\-----------------

They spent the rest of the day stealing glances at each other, blushing wildly, and doing poorly in terms of actual classwork. But neither of them could care much about that when they knew what was waiting for them after school was let out.

The last bell freed them and they walked out together. There were no words between them as they went down the stairs, but Adrien knew that there would be plenty of time for talking when they met up later for their date. 

Their date… Still hard to believe that he’d finally managed it. 

The car was waiting for him and he noticed the subtle changes to the Gorilla’s expression when he saw them together. Adrien wasn’t sure if it was just him imagining it, but he could almost swear that there was a faint smile on his bodyguard’s face. 

“So… you haven’t changed your mind, right?” Marinette struggled to meet his eye.

“I definitely haven’t,” Adrien replied confidently. “I’ve never been more sure of anything.”

“A-awesome! I’ll… I’ll see you later, then. Tonight. Later tonight! For our… for our date. That we are having. Our… romantic, not-platonic, date. Between just us two.” She wrung her hands as she looked at him, looking dazed. “Right?”

Adrien chuckled. “Yes. As romantic a date as I can pull off with such short notice.”

“Great. Awesome. I’ll just… go get ready for it then. Our date.” 

Adrien watched her run across the street before getting into the car. It was excruciating to part from her, even if it was only for a couple hours. It was like she said though; they needed to get ready for their date. And it would be a while before the movie night started. Even if they got there early to get the best spot, it was still hours out. 

“Well, well,” Plagg began, “Looks like you finally got your date. We could’ve been here plenty sooner if you just- mrph!” He was cut off when Adrien silenced him with a wedge of camembert. 

Adrien wanted to bask in this victory for just a little while longer.

\-----------------

Marinette looked at herself in the mirror. Her pastel yellow sundress, embroidered with her signature flowers. Her hair let loose. And so very, very nervous. 

“Girl, it’s going to be alright!” Alya’s hand rested on her shoulders as she appeared next to her. “This dress is way cute - you’re gonna make the boy _wish_ he’d asked you out sooner.”

Her reflection showed her the nervous smile she gave Alya. “I just- this might be my one chance! What if it was just on a whim and I blow it and he never wants anything to do with me ever again?!”

Alya raised her eyebrow. “M, this is definitely _not_ just a whim. I can promise that.”

“What makes you so sure?”

“Call it reporter’s intuition.”

“That’s what you say when you know something I don’t.”

“Precisely.” Alya smiled sweetly. “So take it on faith that I know what I’m talking about. Now get your cute little butt downstairs. I can hear Adrien talking with your parents.” Alya held up Marinette’s purse.

Marinette let out a startled squeak as she snagged her purse. She hurried down the stairs, chased by Alya’s laughter. Her confidence grew as she thought over her best friend’s words, but so did her curiosity. What did Alya know that she didn’t?

Those thoughts were put to the side as she entered the living room where Adrien stood prim and proper in front of her parents. The moment she appeared at the doorway, Adrien was turning towards her and her heart skipped a beat. His outfit wasn’t anything that would grace the covers of his father’s magazines, but his baseball tee hugged his body much better than his usual designer t-shirt, as did the dark wash jeans that made his appearance just on the cusp of being formal.

Or, to be more accurate to what she was thinking at the moment: _Oh God - he's somehow even HOTTER._

“Hey, Marinette-” 

It was gratifying to see the way his eyes widened and he became slack jawed as he looked her over. Ever the gentleman, his gaze immediately snapped back to her face as he schooled his face into a polite smile. Even then, she could see the way his cheeks were blushing furiously. It felt nice for him to finally be in the same boat as her. 

“Hello, Adrien,” she smiled up at him and they spent a few good long moments staring into each other’s eyes before her father cleared his throat.

“Well, you two have a nice time, alright? And don’t stay out too late.”

“Of course, Mr. Dupain!”

“Just call me Tom, son,” her dad said with a chuckle. “I get the feeling we’ll be seeing lots more of each other soon.”

“I certainly hope so,” Adrien replied earnestly as he waved and left, Marinette at his side.

They were quiet as they left and entered the car waiting outside. The appearance of two soft looking blankets surprised her for a moment, but she shrugged it off. Maybe it had been for a photoshoot? She kept her hands on her knees and eyes forward. Her confidence was wavering and she didn’t know what to do to lighten her mood. Adrien seemed about as scared as she was, despite this being his idea. 

“So… My parents didn’t give you too much trouble, did they?” She risked a glance towards him before quickly returning her eyes forward again. “You know how nosy they can be…”

“No, no!” He quickly reassured her. “They were great, very welcoming.” The silence returned. “They seem nice.”

“Yeah. They are.”

She swallowed heavily as the car parked. Before she could do anything, Adrien had practically leapt out of the car, leaving her blinking at his empty spot. She jumped when her car door opened. Had he really just run around just to open it for her? She wasn’t sure whether to be annoyed or touched by that, so she settled for a small smile as she slid out of her seat.

The restaurant wasn’t anything fancy, which helped put her mind at ease some. She’d been afraid that he’d go all out trying to impress her, and that her simple sundress wouldn’t be near good enough. 

“Table for two, please,” Adrien said and they were quickly guided to their seats, where he was quick to scoot out her chair for her. They ordered food and sat in silence for a couple minutes, Adrien fiddling with his ring and Marinette casting glances around the room. 

“I like your dress.” Startled, Marinette looked up at Adrien. “Did you make it yourself?”

“Y-yes!” Marinette smoothed it down, feeling proud and a little self conscious about it. “How did you know?”

“You mean besides the high quality?” He smirked and Marinette’s heart fluttered. “I recognize that flower pattern from that shirt you wear a lot.”

“Th-thank you! And yes, the flower means a lot to me. It’s like a connection to my heritage, you know? I like to put it in my designs, along with my name.” She hesitated. “Is it conceited to have two signatures on a work?”

“Not necessarily. If I made pieces that good, I’d definitely want people to know who made them.” He took a sip of water. “What other projects are you working on? I know you’re always drawing in your sketchbook, so I’m sure you’ve got something in the works.”

“Yes! I’m always working on something. It’s where most of the money I earn helping out at the bakery goes,” she laughed ruefully. “Sometimes its just something for my own closet, but a lot of the time I’m making a gift for someone or working on a commission.”

“Do you get a lot of those?”

“Ever since I did those commissions for Jagged Stone, I’ve had a trickle of projects come my way. Like this one time…”

Marinette got swept up talking about herself throughout dinner. It was a risk when someone got her started with her passions, but she wasn’t entirely to blame. Adrien was a very attentive listener, always asking relevant questions and seemed very interested in everything she had to say about herself. Every time she would think she was done, he’d ask just the right thing to get her locked into another tangent and before long Adrien was paying for the dinner and they were out of the restaurant.

The sun was just about to begin sinking below the horizon, leaving them plenty of time to get to the park. What Marinette had failed to remember was that this was late fall - the daytime might have been comfortably warm, but the night was going to be chilly. And all she had was a sundress.

“Something the matter, Marinette?” Adrien asked as he opened the car door for her.

“Oh! Um, no, I’m fine. Just kicking myself for not dressing warmer is all.”

Adrien chuckled. “I get what you mean. I should’ve brought a jacket so at least one of us could be warm. Thankfully, that’s why I brought these along,” Adrien patted the stack of two blankets between them. A smile graced Marinette’s face. He’d put a lot of planning into something that had been so last minute. 

Once they arrived, he had a few words with the Gorilla, who grunted and drove off.

“What was that about?” Marinette asked as he took her hand in his.

“I told him we’d be here for a while and we were close to your place, so I’d just have him meet me there after we’re done.”

“R-right. Okay.” She might have said something else, but chose instead to enjoy the moment and relish the feeling of holding hands with Adrien. Which made it all the more surprising when he suddenly stopped.

“What about here? We can lean against this tree, and we’re just far enough away from the screen that we won’t be surrounded by people.”

“Sounds great!” She squeaked out. They sat down close to each other, but not too close. Adrien passed her one of the blankets, which she gratefully draped over herself. Unfortunately, this was only barely managing to keep out the chill. It only got worse as the sun dipped below the horizon. Marinette started rubbing her arms to get some warmth.

"Whoa, are you cold?" She glanced over to see Adrien’s vibrant green eyes filled with concern.

"No! No, I'm fine,” she replied, trying to put on a brave face.

"Mari.” His tone was flat, and a touch reproachful. “You're shivering."

"This dress is just a little thin is all, but the blanket is great! I'll be fine-” Her eyes widened as he began shifting. “What are you doing?"

"Scooting closer. I will not have my lovely date shivering when I have a perfectly arm. Now please get under it," he lifted his arm with his blanket still on it.

"Adrien you really don't have to-" 

"Yeah, because snuggling in the park with a gorgeous, intelligent girl is SUCH a hardship.” He rolled his eyes and shot her an oddly familiar grin. “C'mon. I hear guys are great space heaters anyway."

Hesitantly, as if moving too quickly would make her wake up from this dream, she crawled under Adrien’s blanket and felt his arm wrap around her shoulders. She squeaked when he pulled her a little closer, so that their bodies were flush together. By the time the movie began, she’d relaxed a little and rested her head against his chest.

The cold didn’t bother her for the rest of the night.

\---------------------

“I had a wonderful time, Adrien.”

They were standing on the doorstep to her house, the last few moments that they had left for their night together. Neither of them wanted to end it, but there was nothing left for them to do except say goodbye.

“It’s been the best night I’ve had in a long time, Mari.” He looked down at her and hoped that she could see just how much love was in his eyes. He had high hopes - unlike at the start of their date, she wasn’t looking away any more. “I hope we can do this again sometime soon.”

Her breathing hitched. “Does that mean…?”

“That I’d like another date? Of course. Finding a time will be hard, but…” He winked. “I’m more than willing to wait.”

A blush spread across her cheeks. Not the biggest he’d teased from her that night, but beautiful all the same. 

“Good night, Marinette.” He took her hand and dipped down to kiss it. When he looked back up, the redness had spread and she’d averted her eyes. A grin split his face. “Something the matter-”

He was interrupted, and his grin wiped clean, when she put her hands on either side of his face, leaned forward on her toes and pressed a chaste kiss to his lips. It didn’t last long, but he was left wide eyed and dazed on her doorstep as she quickly opened the door.

“GoodnightAdrienIloveyou!” She blurted out as she slammed the door shut behind her. 

Quick heartbeats passed before he touched his lips with two fingers and glanced up at her balcony, his heart pounding as he turned back around. He slipped into the backseat of the car and was startled to hear a slow clap from the front seat. From the rearview mirror he could see a faint smile on the Gorilla’s face. Adrien blushed more deeply. 

Once he was back home, Adrien fell onto his bed and spread out, grinning at the ceiling like a dope. Plagg floated cross legged beside him.

“Well, well, well. Lover boy finally managed to do it.” He clapped his paws together, a toothy smile on his tiny face. “Congrats, kid. And I mean it. But aren’t you forgetting something?”

Adrien propped himself up on his elbows and tilted his head at his kwami.

“You forgot to hint about you being Chat Noir!” Plagg cackled. Adrien let himself fall back against the bed, but his frustration quickly melted away.

After all, there would be plenty more opportunities to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that ends Four Times (and the Lucky One)! As you may have noticed, this story is only the first part in a series. The next one, Eating Habits, will have a bit of a time jump, but will be in the same storyline. I should be publishing the first chapter of that near the start of November!
> 
> In the mean time, check out my Halloween story, The Search for Halloween. And, coming this Monday will be another story featuring the gang! I hope you like both of them, and I hope that you enjoyed the ending of Four Times (and the Lucky One)!


End file.
